Resource jobs under our noses

Some occupations in BC are, at first glance, seemingly quite removed from the front lines of resource commodities. Manufacturing is a good example and so is high technology. At a recent forestry conference in Prince George, Resource Works chatted with two young men who are charting out their careers in these fields and how they link to natural resources.

Matt Pedersen

International Bar Coding Systems

Penticton, B.C.

In this video, Matt talks about how his Penticton-based company with 20 employees provides high-tech tracking for forest products. He uses the term “chain of custody” – this refers to the set of standards that have been developed to help protect ecosystems by ensuring that the lumber you buy at the store can be tracked all the way back to the forest it came from. The purpose is to ensure that trees that should not be cut down are left standing.

Conor McElveen

Murray Latta Progressive Machine Inc.

Surrey, B.C.

We talked with Conor about his job as senior account manager in Murray Latta’s planermill division. The company is based in Surrey and employs 180 people. They supply the forestry, mining, energy and transportation industries with high-specification equipment – but they also work on ski lifts and in aerospace.